Work-Life Post Quarantine

It's the tiny shifts in society that lead to evolution. But what happens when we have a sudden drastic change that impacts, not one group of people, but the entire human race? Kinda crazy to think about that, right?

At this point, I think we all know there will be the world pre-COVID-19 and the world post.

So here are just a few "work-life" changes I could see happening when we get out of this whole thing. Some may be a bit extreme, and some more tangible, but I hope you can take some time to think, "what if?"

Natural Beauty Movement

Natural hair, move over because natural beauty is finally getting its time to shine. At least behind the screens. While I do think that when we open back up, we will be very excited just to put on real clothes again

While I do think that when things open back up, we will all be excited to have a reason to put on clothes that people will be showing out in a full face beat, (Ya, know just to take a pic of them showing out and put it on Instagram. lol) But, I think that will quickly die down. We will see everyday beauty norms shift in the natural direction. The mix of ease, practicality, oversharing of skincare routines and seeing more women embrace their natural faces will have more people joining the pioneer Alica Keys on this fresh face journey.

Work-Life Balance

We are in an intense fight for balance right now. Some are embracing the freedom to create balance, while others are fighting for a new normal.

Regardless, I think all this time away from the office will lead to an increase in the demand for work-life balance. People will place more significant value in self-fulfilling work, self-growth, and spending time with their loved ones. I realize that to corporate America, that may sound selfish. But if more people where able to grow themselves before they try to build a company, we might see a revolutionary change in management and leadership across the board.

Office to Office Supply

Okay, this is a "what if-er." Could offices just become supply rooms? My mom is a teacher, and my favorite place to go with her all-access teacher credentials was the school supply room. I mean, the teacher's lounge was cool to the other kids, but besides the snacks, it was nowhere near as cool as the supply room. It was like a creative studio. Where whatever you needed was there and available.

What if offices downsized their space from housing employees for 8 hours a day to and began investing in more resources to become an open workspace/ creator studio. You'd keep your finance guy, an office manager, and a few others in the office, but the space would mostly be for supplies, creation, and necessary meetings. It's like a middle ground between a co-working space and a traditional office—just something for small businesses to think about.

Period Leave

Working in an office comes with its challenges, but at a particular time of the month, there is a big physical, sensitive, and guilt-ridden challenge that always emerges. The period. It comes with mood swings, cramps, irritability, and fatigue. So much fatigue. Like a deflated helium balloon.

All things that social norms of the workplace frown upon.

I've spoken with a few women about what it has been like to go through their cycle during quarantine, and I was shocked to hear much relief. During #StayHome orders, there's no pressure to have to act like everything is normal while your insides are involuntarily competing in a gymnastics meet, and there's a small insane asylum happening in your head. The ability to just lay horizontal for an entire day while also getting my work done. Amazing. The freedom to work through my own insanity of illogical, emotional thoughts and feelings on my terms, game-changing. What would the workplace look like where women were allotted a period leave? (Lol, the men are probably scared we'll all sync up and leave them hanging. )

Notes: Period Leave, Zambia, Japan, Taiwan, and Indonesia

UGC Tidal Wave

Hey ad people, production budgets just got gutted! When money gets tight, the marketing department always feels it. Always. And if you thought clients wanted the biggest bang for their buck pre-corona, then get ready for post corona. The pressure is on. The ROI, KPI, and OMG asks are going to get bigger while the budgets will be the CD's iPhone and the creative team as actors.

So you know what that means… Influencers and UGC! If you look closely at your timelines, you can already see it. Every ad is a compilation of UGC, SNL is doing Youtube skits, and if someone you follow is posting about taking out the trash, you can assume its a #GLAD #AD.

But all hope is not lost for the art of advertising. With such a drastic, sudden, and forced swing to the left, the pendulum is bound to swing back to the right. Production and content will see a massive spike as money gets flowing again, and the need to differentiate from the content clutter becomes a necessity.

Monetizing the Process

Okay, this one I'm really excited about, and could totally be wrong about. But I am loving this donation-based art we're seeing happening on the live streams.

Prior to COVID-19, we were seeing an increase in content around creators sharing the process over the outcome. And thanks to this new quarantine life, we are seeing just that. Artists (Painters, DJ's, Signer, Rappers, Sculptors, etc) of all levels are activating their followers with free performances and simply suggesting a donation through Cash App or Venmo. And that system is creating some a real, sustainable revenue stream.

So it got me thinking, what if you could monetize your practice? If your process brings in the income, then maybe there will be less pressure on the outcome. Freeing the artist to take more risks, increase practice time for profit, which would ultimately lead to more production.

Thank you for taking the time to read through my crazy thoughts. It was kind of fun to let the imagination run with hope and optimism during these trying times. I'd love to hear any thoughts or predictions you may have about life post-Corona.

Stay hopeful. Stay Optimistic. #StayHome #StaySafe

-KC